The First US President

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What made George Washington significant? George Washington was the first president of the United States and central to America’s founding—both as the military leader who secured independence and as the political leader who stabilized the new republic. With limited formal education, he began working as a professional surveyor at age 17, mapping frontier lands in Virginia. That early experience led to a military career, including a key role in catalyzing the French and Indian War.   As commander in chief of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, Washington held together an underfunded, divided force against Great Britain, arguably the world’s most powerful empire at the time. He avoided decisive defeat, managed fragile alliances, enforced civilian control of the military, and endured years of setbacks until the colonies’ eventual victory. Washington later presided over the 1787 Constitutional Convention.   As the nation’s first president, Washington implemented a new constitutional framework, maintained neutrality during wars between Britain and France, and contained partisan infighting, regional tensions, and domestic rebellion. After serving two terms, Washington voluntarily stepped aside. Washington's legacy is complicated by his ownership of more than a hundred slaves during his lifetime. He emancipated all of the enslaved people he owned directly after his death, an uncommon act among the slave-owning Founders. ... Read our full explainer on George Washington here.   Also, check out ...  > George Washington used his Farewell Address to warn the nation (Read) > Many stories about George Washington are legends without evidence (Explore) > Washington privately grew critical of slavery—while continuing to uphold it publicly (Read) > Washington systematically introduced and popularized mule breeding in the US (Explore)